Printing-point indicator for type-writers.



PATENTEB JULY 14, 1908.

A. MAY. PRINTING POINT INDICATOR FOR TYPE WRITERS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. :3. 1907. v

' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. ALVA MAY, OF MACEDONIA, IOWA, AssIGNoI; TO THE OLIVER TYPEWRITER COMPANY, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A coRronrrIoN or ILLINOIS.

rnm'rmeeeomr INDICATOR FOB TYPE-WRITERS.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALVA MAY, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Macedonia, in the county of Pottawattamie and '-State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Printing-Point Indicators for T pe-Writers; and I do hereby declare that t e following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof,' reference. being had to the accom anying drawings, and to the letters of re ei'ence marked thereon, Which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates 'to a device for use in typewriting machines for the purpose of indicating to the eye-the rinting point on the paper, or the point at w ich the type will strike the paper when the paper-carriage is released from its letter-spacing mechanism and moved by the hand of the o erator to a point at which it is desired to egin' a line or word, or to insert one 0;," more letters in a line already printed.

.The invention is more especially applicable to typewriters of the kind knownuas the Oliver but is adapted for use in other forms of visible writing machines, or those in which the printing polnt is visible to the operator during the progress of the printing.

The invention consists in the matters hereinafter described and point-ed out'in the appended claims. v My invention may be'more readily understood by referenee to the accompanying drawings, in which i I Figure 1 1s a view in central vert1calsec-.

tion showing the platen and the forward portions of a paper-carriage .of an Oliver typewriting machine equipped with my improvements. Fi 2 is a plan vlew of the parts shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the movable indicating member and associated parts. Fig. 4 a sectional plan view taken on line 44 of Fig. 1.

, As shown in said drawings, indicates the laten, and 2 the lower, forward, transverse rame bar of the apcr-carriagc in which the -platen is mounte Said frame-bar 2 is,pro

vided at its forward edge with rack-teeth 3.

4 indicates an 11 ri ht rotative shaft, which forms partof tfie l ettenspacing lnechanism of the machine. To the u )per end of said shaft 4 is attached a gear pinion 5'which intermeshes with the rack-teeth 3 on the car riage frame-bar 2 and to the lower end of said Specification of Lejttrs {Patent Application filed December 13, 1907. 'QeriaIME3-15.

Patented July 14, 1908.

' shaft is attached an escape-Wheel 6, in connection with which operate a pawl 7 and an oscillatin esca ement lever 8 which is operated by a l of tlie key-levers of the machine. Said shaft 4 is rotated through the action on the pinion 5 of the rack-teeth on the carriage, which latter is given endwise movement by the actuating spring of the machine, and the rotative movement of 'saidshaft is controlled by the letter-' acing mechanism including an escape-whee 6-and lever 8, as

in the :Oliver. typewriter and other typewriting machines havin a rack-and-pinion connection between the l etteraspacing mechanism of thepaper-carriage.

9 indicates the shift-frame of the machine on which the carriage is supported and on .2 bythe sliding of the block 11 in said sup porting arm, and a coiled spring 12 which is inserted between the said block and the outer end of said slot acts to hold the pinion in mesh with the rack-teeth 3.

13 indicates a carriage release-bar which is mounted on the top of the carria e frame-bar 2 and slides horizontally forwar ly and rearwardly thereon. The forward edge of said release-bar is adapted for contact with a rotative ring 14 mounted on the upper end of the shaft 4 above the gear pinion 5. Said release bar is adapted to be moved or shifted forwardly by manually operated devices on the paper-carriage, for the purpose of disconnectin ,the gear-pinion from the rack-teeth and -t ereby releasing the paper-carriage from the letter-spacing mechanism, in order to permit free endwise movement of the carriage, under the control of the hand of the operator, as in the Qliver typewriter.

15 indicates a rigid supporting standard which is attached to 'and rises from the arm 10, the same being secured to the right-hand side face of the said arm 10. The standard 15 corresponds with the standard employed in the -()liver typcwriting machine for supporting the parts constituting the ribbon throw mechanism. Said ribbon throw mechanism constitutes no part of the present invention and is not, therefore, illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

shaft which is'pivotall v supported on the standard 15 and is provided at its upper end of the platen with its free end adjacent to the printing point, and which is adapted tor ateral oscillation in a manner to carry it tovi'aidsand awa trom said printing point. through the turning of said rock-shalt. Said indicating arm stands normally at a distance from the printing point, so that it will at such time be out 01' the way ol' and will not intertei'e with the type in making the impression, but is adapted to he swung laterallv to a posi tion with its free end or point opposite or in line with the printing point. Attached to the lower end of said rock-shalt It) is a rigid horizontal arm 18 which extends therel'roni toward and in a position to he acted upon h v the. sliding block 11 in which the upper end of the pinionshat't t has hearing. A spring 12) is applied to said rock-shalt lti to turn the same in adireetion to carry the pointer 17 toward the printing point and to hold the arm 18 on the shalt lo pressed against. the forward or outer l'ace of said hloeh 11.

In the )articular construction illustrated, the rock-s iat't 16 is located at the rear of the standard .15, and hearings for said rocltshal't are all'orded by means ol'.a vertical plate 20 secured to the right-hand l'aceol' the standard 15 and which has at its rear edge upper and lower, rearwardly projecting lugs 21 and 22 provided with hearing apertures for said rock-shaft. in this construction the spring 19 is ol" coiled form and surrounds said shaft between the lugs 21 and 32; said s ring being connected at one end with the s ialt and at its opposite end with one of said lugs. The swinging movement of thepointer and reek-shaft, under the action of said spring, is limited by the contact of the arm 18 with the sliding blockll; the )arts hemg so arranged that when the said h ock is at the l i l lease said pinion from the raclvteeth 3. 16 indicates a vertically arranged rock E hloeh ll thereon, and the roek-shatt to there- With a liOllZOllttlllX arranged pointer or indii eating arm 17 adapted to extend over the top h turned or swung in the direction to arry the pointer]? thereon laterally to the prints ing point, or to the place at \\lil.tll the imrearward limit of its movement. the said pointer Will stand at the printing point. 'lhe pointer will preferably he mat 'e ol sueh length that its rear end or point will extend to the lower edge ot' the printed line and will pression will he made in the succeeding action ol' one ot' the tvpes on the paper. It l'ollows that during the en lwise movement, ol the papee-carriage, ell ecti-d it? the operalor in order to hring the paper in the position desired tor starting a word or i'or inserting an erased letter the pointer 17 will stand exactl opposite and will correctly indicate the priiiling point on the paper. When, however, the gear pinion is released and at lowed to resume its engagement with the rack-teeth on the paperwarriage the rockshat't willhe turned or swung by its spring so as to carr v the pointer 17 away from the printing point and out of the way of the t vpe.

In the normal eondition of the parts, or when the pa )ercarriage is under the inlluenee ot the ietter-spaeing mechanism; the pointer will he held away from its indicating position, so that it will not in any way intertere with the strokes of types against the apei' in the printing operation. .ihen, toweter, the paper-cariiage is relea d from the letter-spacing devices and is {it e to he moved by the hand of the operator, the pointer will indicate the exact point at whitzh the typewill strike when the carriage reengagcd with the letter-spacing device and the printing is proceeded with.

in ,its broader aspect, my invention ineludes a printing point indicator movable into and out of its indicating position, and which is moved or shil'ted, through the act ion of parts concerned in the connection of the mper-carriage with and its release t'roin the ietter-spacing meeianisnn in such manner that the pointer of the indicating derive will he hrought into its indicating position when tliepaper-carriage is released from said lett erspacing mechanism, and will he moved awa t'rom such indicatingposit ion when the papercarriage is connected with the lettermpm'ing reach somewhat beyond. the inner or rear I edge-.ot' the'seale-har 25, whieh is shown as extendin along the laten forward of the printing e, as in t e said Oliverf inaehine. To hold the said rock-shaft from .vertieal movement in the bearing lug, a collar 23 is applied to the shaft iibove the'lower hearing lug 22, and a pin 24. is inserted through the rook-shaft below said lower hearing lug.

The. arts described are so arranged that when it ie release bar 13 is shifted outwardly mechanism. a

it follows that so tar as the hroader aspects at my invention are concerned, the pointer may he moved into and out oi its indicating position by means other titan the particular devices illustrated.

, I claim as my inventionz l. in a t t'pewriting machine, the combination witha )lateu, a paper carriage, letter spacing mecdianism, and a part whicte is moved or shil'ted to discount-tat the carriage from said letter-spacing mei-lninism, of a movahle pointer and an perative llllLW llt ll.

llvii between said ointer .and' said part which is so moved or s ifted to disconnect the papercarria e from the letter-spacing mechanism.

2. I n a typewriting machine, the combination with a platen, a paper carriage and let tar-spacing mechanism embracing rack-teeth on the paper-carriage, and a pinion adapted for, en agement with said rack-teeth, sai'd pinion eing movable into and out of engagement with said rack-teeth,for disconnecting the paper-carriage from said letter-spacin mechanism,. a pointer movable toward and from the printing point, and actuating eans for the pointer controlled by the movement of the said pinion and operating to effect the shifting of the pointer to the printing point when said pinion is released rom the rack-teeth and to throw the, ointer Y away from the printing point when t e pinion is engaged with said rack-teeth.

3. In a typewriting machine, the combinatlon wlth a platen, a paper-carriage provided with rack-teeth and a 1pinion forming part of the letter-spacing mec anism of the machine and which is movable toward and from the rack-teeth, of a movable pointer, aspri'ng acting on said pointer to throw the same toward the plrintmg point, and means actuated e movement. of the pinion acting through t tally oscillating arm engaged wit to hold'the pointer away from the printing point when said pinion is engaged with said able into and out of engagement with the same, an u right shaft on which. said pinion ismountec, and a sliding block affording bearing for the upper end of said shaft, of an upright rock-shaft provided. with a horizonlpointer, and with a ri id 1 said sliding block, an a spring applied to said rock-shaft and acting onthe same in a direction to throw the pointer toward the printing point.

In testimony, thatl claim the'foregoing as my invention 1. afiix my si nature in the resence 'of'two'witnes'ses, t is 9th day of:v

eceifi'ber AiDflQOZ. v -ALVA MAY.

Witnesses: W I v H. H.'SHEAFFER,

'A.A.MCMILLEN. 

